I was just having a discussion with my 11 yr old son. Remember that age?? If you played for the Steelers...you were a great player. Remember thinking you could never replace Jack Lambert, Greg Lloyd, Rod Woodson, etc.???

I mean, once those guys retired, we were finished??? Done ... can't replace them.

My 11 yr. old told me we need to get Nick Eason back ..... then he said, "remember we have Trai Essex too" ... how do you let down an 11 yr. old and tell him Santa isn't real???

But lets keep things in perspective here . . . this isn't major league baseball. The only professional sports franchise that can demand a championship year after year are the NY Yankees. I think I could put a pretty good team together with a $200,000,000 payroll.

BUT we are the PITTSBURGH STEELERS ... our expectations are high. Living in Western, NY . . . . if the Bills had this team over the last few years, they would be thrilled!! I mean, they go 3-1 in September and they are in "lah lah land" . . . .

OK, even though we are 2-2 I have lost hope in this team already . . . I'm a homer, but I'm also realistic. We had a great run last year . . . but lets say we miss the playoffs this year.
- Does this change the fact that we are fans of the greatest franchise in the NFL???
- Do seasons like this make us stronger?? Maybe not in Cincy or Cleveland ... but in Pittsburgh, don't they???
- If you put together a graph, do you see the Steelers sinkin' like the Stock Market w/ little hope for the future???
- Do you see the future getting brighter?? Like changes in the coaching staff (BA)???

So I'm going to bed at night perfectly content with my decision back in 1981 to follow the Steelers faithfully and I wouldn't change it one bit. If you've made it this far, you are a better man than when you first clicked this link.
Love & Happiness to you fellow Steeler faithful ... Smythe :moon

RuthlessBurgher

10-05-2011, 10:15 AM

Tell the boy that Nick Eason is playing out in the desert with Whis, Grimm, Horton, and the rest of Pittsburgh West.

sd steel

10-05-2011, 02:19 PM

I have an 11 year old as well and he has been by my side watching every game since he was 5. This year we have talked about how lucky his has been to be a Steeler fan his whole life...but with that being said sometimes you have to see what it is like to be on the otherside to appreciate all of the success.

I haven't counted us out yet, but I have told him not to get too discouraged at our lack of success, because it's bound to happen. His biggest gripe is why we don't play some younger guys in place of Foote and Farrior to cover the backs out of the back field. He can see the old guys are slow why can't management?

Sonny

10-05-2011, 03:17 PM

- Does this change the fact that we are fans of the greatest franchise in the NFL??? We are the greatest franchise, and we base that off of Super Bowls. We had a wonderful chance last year to distance ourselves from Dallas and SF, but most importantly, Green Bay. Now, we have 6 and they have 4. With the team they have, catching us is a real possibility.

That may not be so important to some, but to me, nothing is better than running into Cowboy fans, 49er fans, Raider fans, even Packer fans(for now) and throwing the "6" in their face.

We'll be ok though. We're not done. Not even close.

fezziwig

10-05-2011, 05:36 PM

Abercrombie stunk, Delton Hall was a one year wonder in drew nothing but flags after getting beat, Weegie Thopnson was average at best, Theo Bell should not have been retained over Pearson.

And who said there is no Santa Clause ?

SidSmythe

10-05-2011, 07:17 PM

Abercrombie stunk, Delton Hall was a one year wonder in drew nothing but flags after getting beat, Weegie Thopnson was average at best, Theo Bell should not have been retained over Pearson.

And who said there is no Santa Clause ?

my point was, as a kid, i thought those players were the best ... they come and go. Never dreamed of having someone greater than Greg Lloyd (James Harrison that is) but it happened.

and hey, i'm a hardened individual. Never believed in Santa cuz my brothers told me he was a myth. Maybe why I have a better sense of reality than most people. :Beer

fezziwig

10-05-2011, 07:25 PM

I hold the seventies teams dear to my heart. I was young, first got into to football and it was something my father and I enjoyed together. It wasn't like the typical father son relationship when watching our Steelers we , were enjoying something together compared to clean your room, feed the dog and so on.

Boy oh boy, your brother screwed you blue with the whole Santa thing.

I believe the whole Santa thing builds a kids character. Helps with real life. Gets you used to the real world when your happiness is pulled out from under you for no apparent reason in life.

NW Steeler

10-05-2011, 07:45 PM

- Does this change the fact that we are fans of the greatest franchise in the NFL??? We are the greatest franchise, and we base that off of Super Bowls. We had a wonderful chance last year to distance ourselves from Dallas and SF, but most importantly, Green Bay. Now, we have 6 and they have 4. With the team they have, catching us is a real possibility.

That may not be so important to some, but to me, nothing is better than running into Cowboy fans, 49er fans, Raider fans, even Packer fans(for now) and throwing the "6" in their face.

We'll be ok though. We're not done. Not even close.

I prefer to throw a single digit in their face. Just saying.

steeler_fan_in_t.o.

10-06-2011, 09:45 AM

After the SB last year my 8 year old son was close to tears. I told him not to cry because of how lucky we are to be Steelers fans and compared it to friends of ours who are Browns fans. I'm not quite sure how anyone outside of Cleveland who never saw Jim Brown live becomes a Browns fan, but I digress.

It was the third SB appearance and we have two wins - one of which he watched with me and a large group of others - in his lifetime. Only two franchises in the league can say that.

SidSmythe

10-06-2011, 08:56 PM

After the SB last year my 8 year old son was close to tears. I told him not to cry because of how lucky we are to be Steelers fans and compared it to friends of ours who are Browns fans. I'm not quite sure how anyone outside of Cleveland who never saw Jim Brown live becomes a Browns fan, but I digress.

It was the third SB appearance and we have two wins - one of which he watched with me and a large group of others - in his lifetime. Only two franchises in the league can say that.

Your kid is going to be spoiled like the fans from the 70s. I suffered from 1981 til the Cowher era (except for 1984 and the Hoge fumble in Denver) ... took me 25 yrs to witness a Superbowl victory!!